Pork loin with onion and apricot – chatting to Billy can be expensive.

I was in our butcher’s shop recently, chatting to Billy. We were talking about pork, as you do. This got to Billy suggesting that I should try a pork loin, on the bone. He even offered to dress it for me. How could I say no. He had ‘broken a pig’ that day and the loin looked pretty spectacular. I was hooked. And, with nine people arriving for Sunday dinner, this looked like the joint to serve. I was excited.

I wanted to do something different. Pork with apple sauce? – Meh! Pork with prunes? – No thanks. Pork with green veg? – No thanks AND Meh! Then I thought of cooking Pork Loin with Onion and Apricot. I had not heard of it before and the flavours seemed right to me.

What a glorious combination. Particularly fine with the pork.

It was while I was carving through the skin and fat that it struck me, I had gone in to get enough beef for a stew. This was an expensive way to feed the hoards!

Don’t be horrified. You need fat to make crackling. We all love crackling.

I rubbed the salt into the flesh and tried not to think of the expense.

A good rubbing with salt, olive oil and then black pepper will prepare the skin.

This went into the oven at 230º C for 20 minutes. It then got another hour and fifteen at 190º C. With an hour to go, I added the onions. These had been roughly chopped.

Very tempting to crack off one of those crispy tiles of tastiness.

With 20 minutes left on the clock, the apricots went in. For the obsessive amongst you, I removed the stones and added twenty-two apricots. It would have been 24 but my niece who was ‘helping’ helped herself to a couple.

The apricots were a little on the hard side before going in. Perfect coming out.

I prepared some sweet potatoes and popped them in the oven at the same time.

I used sweet potatoes with sage as the side with this. Perfection.

I put the joint on my cutting board and let it sit for ten minutes. I used this time to separate the gravy from the pan.

A pig has ten ribs. Go on, count them.

The onion and apricot worked really well together. Perhaps there is a way to refine this for ‘fine dining’. However, it was pretty fine like this.

The pork fat combines with the carmelised onion and apricot to produce awesome flavours.

I suppose a pouring shot will be forgiven after all that….

I separated the pan juices and was left with fantastic gravy.

So, next time you have a crowd to please, perhaps after a Lotto win, give this a go. It is really excellent. Thanks Billy.

Latest comments

Your butcher trimmed that beautifully and you done his work justice 😉 I really enjoy talking to the butcher – mine nearly had me buying a cow’s leg/foot last week! I was very tempted, but didn’t have time to deal with it.

What a gorgeous piece of meat! I have a fantastic butcher down the street, he loves chatting with his customers, asking questions (mostly about what they make with the meat he sells them). He always gives me great cuts of meat, promising I will love them, and I always do! I wonder how I should describe this cut of meat in French in order to get something similar…(I always have a hard time translating meat cuts from French into English and vice versa).

Conor, that is one very fine looking pork loin roast and I like the combination of apricots and onions. I imagine the “hoard” was more than satisfied with the meal from their gracious host. Pork Loin is one of my favorite cuts and I do love it bone-in. One of my favorite preparations is a crown roast during the Holidays. I may have to do one to post this Holiday Season. They make a spectacular presentation and are tasty beyond belief.

I would imagine the crown would be fantastic Richard. I watched a British cookery show “The Hairy Bikers” last week where they prepared a crown of lamb. It looked delicious. I suspect one could use bigger fruit with the pork too. You know that you now have to do it. I look forward to the post.

Have you ever tried marinating pork in apricot brandy before roasting? You might like it. You did justice to a beautifully cut meat. I’d love to get my hands on something like that, then cook it and eat the whole top skin all by myself. I can be selfish.

I’m salivating – and I concur with prices – I bought a three (or was it two) rib beef roast from the butcher last Christmas and it was £40. I mean it was nice enough but really it made me wonder which parts of the animal the mince you get for £3 a half kilo is coming from

Eha|24th September 2013

Hmm: last time it was the fishmonger who ‘talked you into’ some rather expensive product methinks 🙂 ! But was the praise you must have received not worth both money and effort!! [As a bub I had my seat paddled more than once for picking on one or three of those ’tiles’ before the roast was carried out to waiting guests: right from the middle of course!] . . . now waiting for your oxtail recipe: one of my real weaknesses . . .

here in japan i tend to stumble upon the bone-out pork loins and bellies all the time. i have my own special recipe for cooking them over a campfire, but your method seems far more elegant.

i was curious, do you get loquats in your neck of the woods? we have them in droves here in japan, and it might be an amazing fruit with a similar flavor profile to apricots you could try with your roast next time.

Hi Misha, Loquats are only available occasionally in speciality stores here. Very expensive (and I suspect not the best quality either). I’d love to try them, if I can get the price / quality / availability triangle to align. Best, Conor

That really is a five star dish. It looks absolutely mouth-watering and I love the way you cooked the apricots in amongst the meat and onions. I may have to detour past the butcher’s this morning and buy a bone-in loin. Another winner, Mr Bofin.

Pretty impressive, Conor. Great looking piece of meat. Unless you can get your hands on some heritage pork, the loin is the least desirable part hereabouts because it’s so lean (“the other white meat”), and risks emerging dry from the oven if you even briefly overcook it. From the looks of yours, I gather there was a fair amount of fat in the meat. I’m jealous. It’s worth being talked into an expensive cut if it delivers. Ken

This looks wonderful. Looking at your pictures, I can almost taste my mother’s on-the-bone , moist-from -the-fat pork lion.Unfortunately in the U.S. , everyone went ‘healthy-food, no-fat’ insane and we can only find boneless pork loins that have no fat whatsoever, or a thin layer at the bottom. It is a crime against eating,I can tell you.